We had an enjoyable ride into Istanbul this morning. Usually the ship travels all night to have us sitting in the port of a city first thing in the morning; however, today we were scheduled to arrive at 1:00pm so we decided to find a seat on the front of the ship's 13th floor bar and watch as the ship pulled into the harbor. It was a foggy day. Not much sunshine so the sea had a mystical view about it. As we approached the area, many cargo ships were heading in the same direction as we were. Tiny fishing boats were scattered across the harbor. The captain even blew his horn three times warning one tiny boat to get out of the way.
We passed the Blue Mosque, the Hagia Spohia, and the Toplapi Palace going into Istanbul. These places are the ship's excursions that are available to purchase for tour. I had never heard of these places before this trip...but I had heard of the Grand Bazarra, so guess where we were going.
We enjoyed lunch on the back deck while watching the busy harbor....cargo ships, fishing boats, cargo ships, car ferries, police boats, tourboats, and boat taxis moving about. The harbor was one of the busiest that we have ever seen...reminded us of the harbor in Hong Kong....it is amazing that they all seem to be able to navigate the choppy water without bumping into each other. We do hear their horns sounding out at each other occasionally...we wondered if there ever is a boating accident here with the huge ships and the tiny boats and all the passing ferries. It has to be remarkable for them to move about without an accident occurring.
Istanbul is made up from a vast history of conquerors...Hittites, Phrygians, Greeks, Cimmerians, Lydians, Persians, Mecedonians, Romans...As we entered the harbor, the ship's captain pointed out that Istanbul is divided by the Bosporus River. The Eastern section is known as part of Asia Minor and the Western part is European. This river flows from the Sea of Marmara to the Black Sea.
Once the ship was docked, Larry and I decided to enjoy the calm quiet ship for the afternoon and then head out for an evening in Istanbul. We had dinner on the back deck of the ship...watching the boats going back and forth in the Marmara Sea. We enjoyed a night time walk among the stars of Istanbul. We left the port and walked past numerous restaurants with the nargile water pipe bars.
Smoking these water pipes have been a tradition since the early 17th century. Through the 20th century, water pipes were considered antiquated; however over the past decade a hugh resurgence in popularity has occured. Larry and I were witness to this when we saw so many people enjoying this activity in the evening.
A waiter shared a menu with us explaining that you can order a plain, fruit, or herb tobacco such as apple, cherry, or mint. People were lounging on the sofas and stuffed seats taking puffs off the shared smoking urns...it looked like as many as eight people could smoke off one urn. These places were thriving with business.
Tuesday, April 23, 2013
Larry and I were up bright and early to explore the European side of Istanbul. Where were we heading today? The Grand Bazaar! This is a must for all Istanbul visitors. We walked through the port gates and down a street that was truely a man's shopping area....hunt supplies, tools, hardware....nothing of interest to a female. After walking about a half and hour, we came to the Galata Bridge where numerous people were fishing.
Larry had to check out what was being caught. What sights! The busy harbor...the traffic...the moslems mosques....the traffic ...and the people watching was amazing! So many cultures were mixed together here. The moslem women all wore scarfs on their heads.
Many had on raincoats to cover their bodies. We did see some wearing burqas. There were a wide variety of ways that women choses to cover their selves....some with fashionable scarves, some with long raincoats, some in all black....
Larry and I sat for a while on the far side of the bridge where the tourist ferries docked and just observed. Oh my!We even saw police with automatic guns slung over their shoulders....kind of a scarey scene.
We finally got up and moved across the street walking through a nice neighborhood of upscales shops, heading up the hill to our destination for the day. The Grand Bazaar is one of the world's oldest shopping centers.
Constructed in 1461, the bazarra is an endless mix of carpets, ceramics, Middle Eastern antiques, and endless souvenirs....more that 3500 shops spred over 64 streets with over 22,000 workers...it was dizzying.... and by lunch time the crowds were enormous....a quarter of a million visitors pour through the gates each day.
The day that Larry and I visited I think it was a million. Why? It was the National Holiday for Turkey and schools were closed and everyone was off from work. We have not seen such a large crowded area....everywhere we went.
We found one patch of tulips in front of a government building with automatic weaponed guards
We shopped around, and tried to haggle...it was expected.
To our surprise, we found that Turkey is the 17th richest country in the world....soon expected to surpass the Netherlands. It was the first Arab country for Obama to visit due to their ability to stand strong away from the happenings in neighboring countries of Iran, Iraq, and Egypt. Turkey is also a contender for the 2020 Olympics. They are a proud country with flags flying everywhere.
It is also a land of surprises.....
Drinking tea in a glass without a handle
We had a wonderful day. We had walked many miles today, although, we had passed several opportunities to ride the modern looking tram and bus systems. We really enjoyed the sights and being up close to the Istanbul citizens.
In the evening, we had a nice dinner on the back deck of the Jade and stayed to watch the sun set and the ship pull out of the harbor. We got more shots of the skyline of Istanbul with a different perspective during the evening than what we had during the noon approach. It all was so exciting to experience and we enjoyed every minute of it.
on the bridge every minute or so
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